Socket and shade support



Aug. 17 1926. "1,596,746

c. B. LOF-rus SOCKET AND SHADE SUPPORT Patented Aug. 17, 19.26.

. UNITED srarns trice.

CHARLES B. LOF'I'US, 0F CHICAGO, ELLINOIS.

SOCKET AND SHADE STIPPQRT.

Application filed April 22, 1926.

lli/ly invention relates to means for connecting lamp-sockets and shades to threaded supports, and particularly to means for se* 'curing sockets and shades simultaneously to the wire ducts which support them.

ln employing lamp-sockets in connection with metal shades and pendent wire chiots, it has heretofore been customary to assemble the parts on the job and to twist the wires to a considerable extent while making a part of the mechanical connection by rotating the shade and socket while screwing theV supporting clamp upon the pendent pipe (or theconduit fitting) by which the socket and shade assembly is to be supported. l

This practice has two serious objections, one being the inconvenience and relatively high cost of doing all of this assembling and connecting on the job. Since such sockets and shades are usually placed high above the ground, the electrician installing the same must work on a ladder, where the necessity of balancing himself interferes with speedy work. aspects, my invention aims to provide a socket and shade support adapted to be assembled in the contractors shop, or elsewhere at an ordinary bench, thereby greatly reducing the overhead manipulation and correspondingly reducing the cost' of the installation.

Another serious objection to the heretofore customary practice lies in the fact thatin threadedly attaching the ordinary socket and shade support to the pendent pipe, this support has to be rotated after the wires (which run through the pipe) have been secured to the base of the socket. This rotation intertwists the wires and, unless sufficient slack has been allowed in these wires, they are apt to be overstrained and broken, thereby making it necessary for a man on a ladder to disconnect, rewire andreassemble the entire fixture.` So also,in case of damage to the socket or shade, neither could be replaced without unt-wisting the wires, thereby again introducing the likelihood of overstraining the wires.

My present invention aims to overcome this .objection also, by providing -a socket attached to a swiveling member whichneed not be rotated at attaching ofthis and shade support in which the socket isr assemblage to a pipe or i ln one of its important and retwisting all during the threaded Serial No. 104,032;

ting, with all except the upper portion of the shade cut away.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged central and vertical sect-ion through the same assemblage after the upper (or supporting) duct has been threaded into the conduit'ltting.

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the swiveling member of my device as initially manufactured, with dotted lines showing the later flaring of the lower end of this member.

Fig. 4 is a plan porting member.

F 1g. 5 is an elevation of the shade-clamp ing` flange.

Fig. 6 is a partly sectional elevation of a swiveling member employed when my dcviceis to be, attached to a supporting pipe having a'male thread.

In the embodiment of Figs. l to 5, the base 1 of the lamp-socket is secured by screws 2 to the base flange 3 of a socketsupporting member which has an upwardly projecting tubular stem L surmounted by a smaller-diametered andV externally threaded shank The outside diameter of the stem i desirably corresponds approximately to the bore of the metal shade which has its radially inner portion resting upon ofthe flange 3, and which shade clamped down upon this flange by a clamping flange 7. This clamping flange hasa central boss 8 threaded in its boreV to lit the shank 5 ofthe socket support, andthe erterior of this boss is preferably polygonal,

view of the socket-supthe top. portion is as shown in F ig. l, while the bottom ofthe v the socket support.

Extending through thisstem 4L andthe threaded shank above the llatter is the lower stem portion 9 of a swiifelingmeinbeiwhich:

portion initially has this Fi 3. iin employing Vsuch a K duit fitting 1e and a r, ends of the .wires to serted into the said After the said portion 9 is thus inserted, its lower end is fiared out (as in Fig, 6) to provide a lower swiveling end 10 which fits into ai correspondingly tapered lower part of the bore ofthesocketsupport. The swiveling member also in cludes an upper threaded part y11 and a diametrically enlarged part 12 which is iii terposed between the parts 9 and 11, which part 12 desirably is socket and shade support in connection with a ceiling conpendent supporting pipe 13, which pipemay be varied in length according to the desired spacing of the socket from the ceiling, the conduit fitting 14 is first positioned on the ceiling with the conduits and the supply wires running into it in the usual manner.

The other parts can all be secured to each other at a floor bench to form the assemblage shown in Figxl, this being done either on the job or at the contractors shop. The socket support is ma e up at the factory with the swivelingY member extending through it and flared out at its lower end, and the .flange 3 of this support is first attached to the base 1 ofthe-two-part lamp socket by the screws. rlhen the shade is 'slipped over the tubular stem of the swiveling'member and the clamping member is screwed kdown onthe threaded part 5 of the support so that the clamping flange 7 clamps the top ofthe shade against the part 8 can be readily gripped for rotating the clamping flange to effect this clamping, and the flange 3 preferably has spaced riser portions at its outer edge which tend to indent the top of the shade and hence will with the said clamping to prevent,

cooperate the shade from rotating on -my support, and the flange 3 may also have a moreV inward annular portion 3B against which the radially inner portion kof the shade is clamped.

n A pipe nipple 15 is then screwed upon the threaded upper portion 11 of the swiveling member and the pendent pipe 13 is thieaded into this until jammed by the usual taper of the thread. then run the wires 16 through the pipe- 13 and the bore of the swiveling member and connect the lower the Vusual terminal screws 17 on the socket base, the wires being of slightly greater length'than that needed for reaching through thependent pipe to the wires in the conduit fitting. The main socket part 1B is thenattached to the socket base 1 in the 4usuaLmanner, thereby completing the assemblage which is all made at a K convenient bench.

' En installing this assemblage, the electri-k cian on the ladder merely'slips the projectingl upper wires through the usual lbottom knurled as shown inv flange 3. The polygonal ,8 ofr the clamping member or theshade 6 can beheld to prevent the socket from rotating, thereby preventing a twisting of the wires 16. Moreover, a possible loosening of the clamping attachment of the shade to ,the support can be prevented by tightening a screw 17 which is threaded through the polygonal part 8 and which extends freely through any selected one of a number of perforations 18 in the part 5 of the support and into engagement with the tubular stem portion 9 of the swiveling member.

Where the shade is; to be lplaced close to the supporting conduit fitting, the pendent pipe 13 is omitted and the upper threaded end 11 of the swiveling member is screwed direct into the outlet ltA of the conduit fitting. Furthermore, the samesocket and support can obviously be yused for attachment to wall fittings or in connection with bent pipesinstead of the straight pipe 13 of Figs. 1 and 2. So also, my invention may be employed without the interposition of a pipe nipple 15 by providing the swiveling member with an upper knurled end 12A which has a female thread for direct attachment to the pendent or other supporting pipe 13. Hence I do -nct wishy to be limited'to the details of construction and arrangement above described, since many modifications might be made without departing either from Y the spirit of `my invention or from the appended claims.

claim as my invention:

1. Means for "supporting a lamfp-soclret and ashade; comprising a socket carrier interposed between the lamp-socket and the shade and secured ,to the socket; the carrier having a perforation in axial alinementrwith the socket; means attachable to the carrier after 'the socket is secured to the carrier, for clamping the shade to the carrier; and a tubular stem extending through the said perforation and rotatable upon the carrier; the stem having a radially enlarged end disposed between the carrier and the socket, and haring its other end threaded for attachment to asupport.

2. Means for supporting a pendentlamp socket and a shade prising a flange secured to the top of the socket andhavin g an eXteriorly threadedand tubular Vriser Vshank extending through the shade; anut threaded on thesaid shank and clamping the shade 'to the top of the flange;

Vand a tubular stem Journaled Vin the bore of the 4flange and `having its lower end rahousing the socket; comange, the stein having means at its upper end for threadedly attaching it to a support.

3. Means for supporting` a pendent lampsocket and a shade housing the socket; eornprising a socket carrier having a iiange secured to the top of the socket and having a riser shank extending through the shade in axial alinement with the socket, the riser being threaded at its upper end and having an axial bore flared out at its lower end; a clamping member threaded on the riser and clamping the shade against the said ange;

Ving portion and a swiveling threaded at the bore of said shank and having its lower end flared out into engagement with the fiar- Of the said shank bore, the said tubeextending upwardly through the bore oi the shank and havingl a knurled portion interposed between the threaded upper end of the tube and the upper end of the said shank.

VSigned at Chicago, Illinois, April 3rd,

CHARLES B. LOFTUS.

member comprising a tube its upper end and Journaled 1n 15 

